Winter cold hasn't really hit us yet, but here in Canada, that only means very cold months ahead. That's why this hearty beef stew is the perfect dish for those upcoming cold winter evenings. It'll warm you up and fill you up so you can go to bed satisfied.

This very simple recipe, that I slightly changed from this one, requires:

2 to 2 1/2 pounds very lean beef stew meat

2 tablespoons oil

2 cups chopped onions

1/2 cup sliced celery

5 large potatoes, cut in eighths

4 or 5 large carrots, cut in 2-inch slices

1 teaspoon of 7 spices (this can be found in middle eastern markets. If you don't have this, you can simply use pepper).

salt

1 can condensed tomato soup

You can either prepare this in a Crockpot or on the stove top. I did it on the stove top and this is what I did: